LYMAN LOUIS LEMNITZER was born in Honesdale, Pennsylvania, on 29 August 1899; graduated from the United States Military Academy, 1920; was commissioned a second lieutenant, July 1920; attended the Coast Artillery School at Fort Monroe and then served with his battery in the United States and Philippines, 1921–1926; married Katherine Mead Tryon, 1923; was promoted to first lieutenant, June 1925; was twice instructor of natural and experimental philosophy at West Point, 1926–1930 and 1934–1935; again served as a troop and staff officer in the Philippines, 1931–1934; was promoted to captain, August 1935; was instructor in tactics at the Coast Artillery School, 1936; graduated from the Command and General Staff School at Fort Leavenworth, 1936, and the Army War College, 1940; served in the 70th Coast Artillery and the 38th Coast Artillery (Antiaircraft) Brigade, 1940–1941; was promoted to major, July 1940, and to temporary lieutenant colonel, December 1941; was a plans and operations officer on the General Staff and at Army Ground Forces Headquarters, 1941–1942; was promoted to temporary colonel and brigadier general, June 1942; commanded the 34th Coast Artillery (Antiaircraft) Brigade and was concurrently plans and operations officer at Allied Forces Headquarters in England and North Africa and deputy chief of staff of Fifth Army in North Africa, 1942–1943; was promoted to temporary major general (May) and permanent brigadier general (June), 1944; was chief of staff to the Supreme Allied Commander, Mediterranean, and United States theater commander there, 1944–1945; was senior Army member of the Joint Strategic Survey Committee, Joint Chiefs of Staff, 1945–1947; was deputy commandant of the National War College, 1947–1949; was director of the Office of Military Assistance, Office of the Secretary of Defense, 1949–1950; was promoted to permanent major general (April) and temporary lieutenant general (August), 1952; commanded the 11th Airborne Division in the United States and the 7th Infantry Division in operations in Korea, 1951–1952; was deputy chief of staff for Plans and Research, 1952–1955; was promoted to temporary general, March 1955; was commanding general of United States Forces, Far East, and the Eighth Army, 1955; was commander in chief of the Far East and United Nations Commands and governor of the Ryukyu Islands, 1955–1957; was vice chief of staff of the United States Army, 1957–1959; was chief of staff of the United States Army, 1 July 1959–30 September 1960; stressed the need to modernize the Army and pressed for adequate appropriations; was chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, 1960–1962; was commanding general of United States Forces, Europe, 1962–1969; was Supreme Allied Commander, Europe, 1963–1969; retired from active service, July 1969; was a member of a panel that investigated domestic activities of the Central Intelligence Agency, 1975; died in Washington, D.C., on 12 November 1988.

The Artist

Bjorn Peter Egeli (1900–1984), Norwegian-born and American-trained portraitist, painted the likenesses of many prominent military figures, such as Army General Dwight D. Eisenhower, Army General Douglas MacArthur, and Marine General Alexander A. Vandegrift, during an active career in the national capital region. His work is represented at numerous public institutions, including the Pentagon, the United States Military Academy, the Supreme Court, the National Archives, the Maryland statehouse, Brandeis University, the Mayo Clinic, and others. His portrait of General Lyman L. Lemnitzer is reproduced from the Army Art Collection.